Before the objection: Where sales leaders create the advantage

How sales leaders strengthen the mindset, preparation and Trusted Advisor behaviours of their team helping them shape client decisions and commercial performance.

When a client questions the price, asks for more time, doesn’t reply to our proposal or doubts the solution, we turn our attention to the salesperson’s responses. This assumes the objection begins when it’s expressed but it often starts much earlier.

The client rarely says, “I have an objection.”

More often, something shifts: they ask fewer questions, become quieter or move from being actively engaged in a conversation to pulling back. This is where being present matters. When salespeople are fully attentive, listening closely, observing the client’s responses and thinking beyond what they plan to say next, they notice more. They are better able to recognise the moment hesitation enters the conversation and explore it before it becomes a stated objection.

Sometimes the seller notices the hesitation but lacks the skill to explore it. They leap into reaction mode – explain more, defend the price or discount. The spoken objection often exposes hesitation that developed earlier.

For sales leaders, this highlights two issues:  how well the team responds to objections, and what they as leaders can establish before the objections arise.

Across more than 30 years of developing salespeople and leaders, I have repeatedly traced late objections to something that happened – or failed to happen – earlier.

 

When salesperson hesitation becomes a leadership issue

The expression “handling objections” sounds onerous. It frames the client as resistant and the salesperson’s task as overcoming that resistance. An underprepared salesperson may become apprehensive before anything is raised.

The salesperson’s hesitation becomes part of the client’s experience, shaping the questions they avoid, their assumptions and the conviction as they communicate the value of the product/service to the client.

Here is where I would reframe it.

A concern is useful information: the client may need relevance, reassurance or clarity. The salesperson’s role is not to overcome the client. It is to reduce fear, increase certainty and help them make sense of the decision. Guiding the concern is more positive – and commercially valuable – than “handling” an objection.

 

The first person who needs to be sold is the salesperson

 A salesperson’s mindset shapes every client interaction. I explored this in Why Mindset Matters: How Sales Leaders Can Go From Good to Great, an article featuring my insights published by Salesforce.¹

If salespeople privately question the price, value or competitive position, that doubt becomes apparent in their discovery questions, responses and ability to recommend with confidence and clarity. When leaders hear the same objections repeatedly, the natural response is to ask the team to prepare  ‘better’ answers.

But what if the answer is not the problem?

This is a leadership issue. As a sales leader, you set the conditions in which belief is built, connecting the team with evidence, client outcomes and the value of the product/service.

 

Prepare your team for the questions they would rather avoid

Preparation means understanding the client’s organisation, industry and alternative solutions to purchase; knowing the solution and its value; and rehearsing questions that create discomfort for your team.

In my experience, the most revealing part of preparation is often identifying what the salesperson would prefer not to discuss. Two questions we pose in our workshops quickly highlight development opportunities:

1. What question don’t they want to ask the client?

2. What question do they hope the client will not ask?

The answers expose uncertainty about price, value, implementation, competitors or the solution. Engaging roleplays provide a low-pressure environment in which your team can test questions and responses before the client becomes the practice ground.

Preparation must also reflect how much research clients now undertake before speaking with a salesperson. Forrester reports that 94% of business buyers used AI during the purchase process in 2026.² Clients may arrive with substantial information, informed opinions and more complex questions. But being more informed does not necessarily make the client more certain.

Gartner found that 69% of buyers turn to salespeople to validate AI-generated insights.³ These changes where the salesperson demonstrates value.

Salespeople can also use AI to research the client and industry, anticipate possible concerns and prepare an extensive list of questions.

AI can generate a list of questions. It cannot notice a subtle shift in the client.

That still requires a salesperson who is completely present; attentive, listening closely, observing the client’s response and adapting and thinking beyond what they plan to say next. When salespeople are present, they notice more. They can recognise what matters in the moment, interpret the client’s response and adapt as priorities shift.

Your team’s commercial value lies in understanding context, validating what the client has discovered and strengthening their confidence in the decision.

 

Trusted Advisor conversations create commercial clarity early in the conversation

Salesforce found that 84% of business buyers expect to deal with Trusted Advisors, while 73% say most sales interactions feel transactional.⁴ Closing that gap requires the seller to be highly skilled, with a breadth and depth of sales acumen, including preparing an extensive list of possible questions and concerns before the first meeting.

To recognise hesitancy and to practice what to say requires regular, low-pressure practice, including engaging role plays, which equips salespeople to remain calm, attentive and curious a difficult issue arises. In fact, it helps them create a safe space for the client. The lack of defence and the knowledge they are Trusted Advisors mean that these conversations move from awkward to normal and natural.  They provide a natural considered answer, guiding and educating the client.

The practice needs to be consistent – the first client interaction is not the time to practise these responses.

Trusted Advisors are problem finders as well as problem solvers. They do not assume the presenting objection is the real issue; they remain curious enough to uncover what sits behind it. They help clients express hesitation as it emerges, listen closely and adapt as the conversation changes. Gong’s analysis of B2B sales conversations found that the highest-performing calls had a 43:57 talk-to-listen ratio.⁵  My experience is that each conversation has a different weight.  Depending on whether they are proactively finding a client and ‘pitching’ or if the client has called them – then that first conversation is often more like 10:90 talk-to-listen ratio.

For sales leaders, recurring objections invite you to ask:

• Does the team understand and believe in the value of the solution?
• Do they know the competitive solutions and the differences between your offer and theirs?
• Are salespeople preparing for the questions they would rather avoid?
• Can they recognise subtle hesitation and explore it skillfully?
• Do they adapt as the client’s priorities and decision process become clearer?
• Are difficult conversations practiced before they happen with clients?
• Are they waiting for the conversation to handle hesitancy or handling it before the conversation.

Recurring objections reveal capability gaps across the complete commercial conversation. When you strengthen belief, preparation and Trusted Advisor behaviours, your team is better equipped to recognise hesitation, guide client concerns and create clarity before an objection takes hold.

This is where sales leaders create the advantage: in developing how they think, prepare, listen and adapt throughout every client conversation.

 

FREE Masterclass

Reframing objections: From client concern to commercial clarity In this free masterclass for sales leaders, Charmaine Keegan challenges conventional thinking about objection handling and explores what shapes client concerns across the entire sales journey. Discover how Trusted Advisor conversations help sales teams uncover hesitation earlier, demonstrate value and guide stronger client decisions for improved commercial outcomes.   8 October | 11:00 am  Register today

Sources

1. Salesforce (2021), Why Mindset Matters: How Sales Leaders Can Go From Good to Great, featuring insights from Charmaine Keegan.

2. Forrester (2026), B2B Buyers Make Zero-Click Number One, drawing on Forrester’s Buyers’ Journey Survey, 2025.

3. Gartner (2026), Gartner Survey Finds 69% of B2B Buyers Turn to Sales Reps to Validate AI-Generated Insights.

4. Salesforce, 50 Sales Statistics That Reveal the Industry’s Future, reporting findings from State of the Connected Customer.

5. Gong Labs, Keys to Winning Sales Conversations and Analyse Team Performance.